Chelsea v Manchester United: Barcelona's demolition of Real Madrid the best Wayne Rooney has ever seen

Barcelona’s 5-0 destruction of Real Madrid last month was the “best I have
ever seen” according to Wayne Rooney and football perfection that left the
Manchester United forward applauding the television screen.

Entertained: Wayne Rooney was so impressed by Barcelona's performance against Real Madrid that he was out of his seatPhoto: AP

“I was watching in my living room and I actually stood up and applauded what I was seeing,“ Rooney said. “Coleen walked in and asked what I was doing! But it was the best performance I’ve ever seen. It was unbelievable.

“I don’t think it was quite that bad [when United lost to Barcelona in 2009 Champions League final], but if you looked at the Real players’ faces, they were shell-shocked and they didn’t know what to do with the ball.

“The pressure Barca put them under made it so hard for Real to get the ball.”

Cristiano Ronaldo, Rooney’s former United team-mate, endured a miserable evening in the Nou Camp as Lionel Messi inspired Barca to victory.

And Rooney admits he resisted the temptation to contact the Portuguese forward in the wake of Real’s heavy defeat.